Safety kit for sportsmen



1968 l. R. CRANSTON 3,414,365

SAFETY KIT FOR SPORTSMEN Filed May ll, 1967 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Fig.2 Fig./

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Dec. 3, 1968 R. CRANSTON 3,414,365

SAFETY KIT FOR SPORTSMEN Filed May 11, 1967 2 Sheets-Sheet 5-,

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Ivan R. Cransfan INVENTOR.

I 5 f I 5 BY f I a M 1 1 W E Atmqs United States Patent 3,414,365 SAFETYKIT FOR SPORTSMEN Ivan R. Cranston, 1514 S. 4th St. W., Missoula, Mont.59801 Filed May 11, 1967, Ser. No. 637,816 9 Claims. (Cl. 431-291)ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A safety kit for sportsmen, having a foldedsheet of plastic, coiled cord, and a match and candle unit packed in acarrying case. The match and candle unit has a housing with a centralcompartment containing a candle and a set of surrounding compartmentscontaining matchsticks. An annular closure on the housing covers thesurrounding compartments but has an aperture through which matchsticksmay be dispensed upon rotation of the closure on the housing. Aremovable cap covers both the closure and the central compartment. Thecandle has a combustible jacket with a filler of wax therein, the jacketconstituting the sole wick of the candle.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in safety kits forsportsmen, hunters and other persons who on occasions may become lost orstranded with the possibility of having to survive overnight or longerin the open.

Under such adverse conditions exposure is the greatest source of danger,and the two basic needs for preventing or minimizing exposure are theability to provide some heat and the ability to derive some shelter fromthe elements.

The principal object of this invention is to provide a safety kit whichincludes, among other things, a sheet of plastic material for shelteringpurposes, and a match-andcandle combination for purposes of heating. Theplastic sheet is brightly colored so that apart from its primary use asa shelter, it may also be used in signalling or marking the lost personslocation. Additionally, the plastic sheet may be used for wrapping anygame such as may have been caught, the brightly colored sheet thus alsoserving to attract attention so that the person carrying the game is notaccidentally shot by other hunters. Manifestly, apart from its primarypurpose in providing heat, the candle may also be used to provide lightand for signalling or location marking.

An important feature of the invention resides in the construction of thematch-and-candle unit, which includes a. housing provided with a centralcompartment containing the candle and with a plurality of surroundingcompartments containing matchsticks, the surrounding compartments havingan annular dispensing closure through which the matchsticks may beremoved one at a time without the danger of them falling out andbecoming lost. The housing also has a removable cap which covers notonly the closure of the surrounding compartments but also thecandle-containing central compartment, so that both the candle and thematchsticks are safe-guarded against moisture.

Another important feature of the invention resides in the structure ofthe candle itself, the same consisting of a jacket of combustiblematerial having a wax filler, the combustible jacket constituting thesole wick of the candle.

As already stated, the various components of the kit are compactlypacked in a carrying case, from which they may be readily removed forconvenient use as required.

The invention is simple in construction, efiicient and dependable inuse, and lends itself to economical manufacture.

These together with other objects and advantages which will becomesubsequently apparent reside in the details of construction andoperation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, whereinlike numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of the safety kit of the invention;

FIGURE 2 is a vertical sectional view on an enlarged scale, takensubstantially in the plane of the line 22 in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a perspective view of the plastic sheet in its unfoldedcondition;

FIGURE 4 is a perspective view of the coiled cord;

FIGURE 5 is a group perspective view of the matchand-candle unit;

FIGURE 6 is a vertical sectional view thereof on an enlarged scale;

FIGURE 7 is a cross-sectional view, taken substantially in the plane ofthe line 7-7 in FIGURE 6; and

FIGURE 8 is a perspective View of the candle per se.

Referring now to the accompanying drawings in detail, more particularlyto FIGURES 1-4 inclusive, the safety kit for sportsmen is designatedgenerally by the reference character 10 and embodies in its constructiona substantially rectangular case 11 which may be formed from leather,plastic, or the like, the case having an openable top or cover 11areleasably held in its closed position, as by suitable fasteners 12. Theback wall of the case may be equipped with a loop 13 so that the casemay be conveniently carried on the body of the user, as for example, bypassing the loop 13 over the users belt indicated at 14.

The bottom portion of the case 11 contains a folded sheet 'of plasticmaterial 15 which, in its folded condition, is shown in FIGURE 2 whileFIGURE 3 shows the same in an unfolded condition. The plastic sheet 15may be rectangular and is preferably provided along its marginal edgeswith reinforced eyelets .16 through which lengths of cord 17 may bepassed. Thus, the unfolded sheet 15 may be wrapped around the body ofthe user for protection against cold or moisture, or alternatively, itmay be suspended from suitable overhead supports, such as tree limbs, toserve in the manner of a sheltering wall or tent. In either event, thecords 17 passed through the eyelets 16 may be used to hold the sheet inposition and if desired, the cords may be provided at one end thereofwith aloop as indicated at 17a in FIGURE 4 to prevent them from beingwithdrawn from the eyelets 16.

The plastic sheet 15 is preferably brightly colored, as for example,bright red, so that apart from its primary purpose of providing shelter,it may also be used for signaling or marking the location of thestranded person. Additionally, the sheet may be used for wrapping gamewhich has been caught, the brightly colored sheet thus attractingattention so as to prevent the possibility of the person beingaccidentally shot by other hunters.

In the packed condition of the kit, the sheet 15 is folded and stored inthe bottom portion of the carrying case 11 as shown in FIGURE 2, withsufficient room being left in the case above the folded sheet forstorage of addi tional articles, as for example, the cord 17 which maybe coiled as indicated in FIGURE 4 and tied to prevent uncoiling, as forexample, by a suitable tying element 17b. The coiled cord 17 may beplaced in the carrying case 11 on top of the folded sheet 15 andadjacent one side wall of the case, while a combined match and candleunit 18, hereinafter described, may be positioned in the upper portionof the case on top of the folded sheet 15 alongside the coiled cord 17.

Attention is now directed to the match and candle unit 18 which is shownin detail in FIGURES 5-8. The same comprises a substantially cylindricalhousing 19 having an open top and a closed bottom 20, and radiallyspaced inner and outer side walls 21, 22, respectively, the inner wall23 defining a central compartment in the housing to accommodate a candle24. A plurality of radial partitions 25 extend between the inner andouter side walls 21, 22, thus providing a plurality of relatively smallouter compartments 26 each accommodating a match stick 27. The matchsticks 27 are positioned in the compartments 26 with the match stickheads 27a oriented downwardly so as to rest on the bottom wall 20 andthe match sticks are prevented from sliding upwardly or outwardly fromthe compartments 26 by an annular closure 28 which is rotatablypositioned on the upper end of the housing.

The annular closure 28 is of a U-shaped cross-section with inner andouter flanges 28a, 28b telescoped over the respective side walls 21, 22.The outer side wall 22 is formed integrally with an annular rib 29engaging a complemental groove in the outer flange 28b of the closure28, whereby to rotatably hold the closure in position.

The upper portion of the closure 28 is formed with an aperture oropening 30 which is selectively registrable with the compartments 26 tofacilitate individual and successive dispensing of match sticks fromthese compartments. The aperture 30 is large enough to permit the matchstick 27 to slide freely outwardly when the housing is placed in aninverted position, but the aperture is small enough to prevent passageof the enlarged match stick head 27a, unless the match stick is forciblywithdrawn. In this manner, accidental discharge and possible loss ofmatch sticks will be effectively prevented.

A removable cap 31 is applied to the housing 19 over the closure 28, soas to cover not only the aperture 30 in the closure, but also thecentral compartment containing the candle 24. In this manner the entiredevice is rendered substantially water-tight so that access of moistureto the match sticks and to the candle is prevented. A suitable abrasivepad 32 is provided centrally on the underside of thecap 31 so thatthematches may be scratched thereon .for ignition. t

The candle 24'itsel-f is of a unique construction in that, it comprisesa tubular or cylindrical jacket 33 of com--v bustible material,containing a filler of candle wax 34. The jacket 33 constitutes the solewick of the candle, and although the jacket burns after being ignited,it still serves to retain the molten candle wax while the burning is inprogress. It will be noted that by utilizing the jacket 33 as the wick,the provision of the conventional axial wick at the center of the candleis eliminated. If desired, a combustible tab of laminated paper, or thelike, may be secured to the jacket 33 as indicated at 35, so that thecandle may be readily ignited by first setting fire to the tab- 35,which then sets first to the jacket 33 itself. The use of the kit isfurther enhanced by the provision of a mirror 36 on the bottom surfaceof the closed bottom 20 so that signals can be sent by flashingreflectedsunlight'in a known manner. Also, a compass 37 is provided onthe top surface of the removable cap 31 so that a person, such as ahunter, can readily determine his direction of movement.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the partitionsprovided between said side walls anddefining.

therebetween a plurality of-relativelysmall outer comprinciples of theinvention. Further, since numerous mod partments containing matchsticks,the inner side wall defining therewithin a relatively large centralcompartment circumferentially surrounded by said outer compartments andcontaining a candle, an annular closurerotatably mounted on said housingand covering the open :upper ends of said outer compartments whileleaving the top of the central compartment open for access to the candletherein, said closure being provided with an aperture selectivelyregistrable with the outer compartments upon rotation of the closure onsaid housing whereby matchsticks in the outer compartments may beindividually and successively removed through said aperture, and a capremovably superposed on said closure and covering both said aperture andthe open top of the central compartment.

2. The device as defined in claim 1 together with means rotatablyretaining said closure in position on said housmg.

3. The device as defined in claim 1 wherein the matchsticks haveenlarged heads resting on the bottom of said outer compartments, saidaperture in said closure being large enough to permit a matchstick toslide freely therethrough when said housing is inverted but small enoughto prevent passage of the enlarged matchstick head unless the matchstickis forcibly withdrawn.

4. The device as defined in claim 1 wherein said annular closure has aninverted U-shaped cross-section pro- -viding a top portion withdepending inner and outer flanges, said inner and outer flanges beingtelescoped over the respective inner and outer side walls of saidhousing. 5. The device as defined in claim 1 together with a matchscratch pad provided centrally at the underside of said cap.

6. The device as defined in claim 1 wherein said candle com rises ajacket of combustible material and a filler of wax in said'jacket, saidjacket constituting the sole wick of said candle.

7. A container for protected storage for use in a safety kit forsportsmen comprising: 'a substantially cylindrical lio'using having abottom, an open top and radially spaced inner and outer side walls, aplurality of radial partitions provided between said side walls anddefining therebetween a plurality of relatively small outer compartmentsfor use instoring matchsticks, the inner side wall thereof defining arelatively large central compartment circumferentially surrounded bysaid outer compartments and adapted to contain a candle or other firesustaining device, an annular enclosure rotatably mounted on saidhousing and covering the open upper end of said outer compartments whileleaving the top-of the central compartment open foraccess thereto, saidclosure being provided with an aperture selectively registerable withthe outer compartments upon rotation of the closure on said housingwhereby the contents in the outer compartments may be individually andsuccessively removed through said aperture, and a cap removablysuperposed on said closure covering both said aperture and the opentop-of.

References Cited ;UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,960,288 5/1934 Sherman 67-22 x2,622,017 ;12/1952 Bramhall et 1 6721X 2,67I,330 3/1954 Ajello 67-213,327,505 -6/l967- CHARLES J. MYHRE, Primary Examiner.

Brown 67-21

